“But I think in the future you’re going to be in Experiences.” – Mark Zuckerberg
Experiential Marketing and the Rise of Immersive Tech
In these advanced hours, where ‘the more efficient, the better’, marketers have upped their interactive and immersive marketing games to literal gamification and virtual realities. With the instant growth of technology, digital marketing has opened avenues for brands to flex their nerd muscles to create something extraordinary.
From creating fake scenarios to actually creating fake scenarios through AR/VR, the audience has jumped on this technological wagon.
Experiential Marketing has become popular for its ways to make the audience feel more than the moment. This kind of marketing guarantees success to deliver the message of the brands and ensure every one has the time of their lives while at it.
Virtual Reality
What is Virtual Reality exactly? And how has it helped brands forge strong relationships with their audience?
Virtual Reality (VR) is a simulating experience that uses 3D near-eye displays and pose tracking to deliver a life-like experience to the user. The VR creates a virtual world for its audience to have a front row seat into the minds of the brands. It employs use of headsets and multi-projected environments to generate real-life imagery and sound effects to enhance the overall experience.
“It is possible to analyze data, such as users’ engagement, time spent in the virtual environment, and behavior within VR. Such priceless information facilitates informed decision-making based purely on numbers, thereby allowing marketers to sharpen their approaches for improved performance.” The Financial Express
How it works basically, is simple: the user puts on the headset that covers both his vision and auditory senses, and finds himself looking through a screen mounted on the headset along with the sound system for simulating audio. This set up transports the user in another synthetic dimension that allows the user to move around freely in the real world while being completely immersed in virtual reality.
Example: Infosys XR
Infosys launched its “Infosys XR” featuring a hybrid experience initiating AR/VR solutions for businesses to create immersive experiences. The notable features listed for its success included, personalization to every marketing campaign and integration of AI and data analytics for profound experiences. This resulted in global collaborations with global tycoons and 30% conversion rates.
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Augmented Reality
From Ordinary to Extraordinary
Imagine a normal day of the same old tasks, turned into something extraordinary. Going from office and boss’s unrealistic expectations to having your own unrealistic expectations surpassed and how! This is what Augmented Reality promises to its users.
Augmented Reality, which is also called Mixed Reality, is a technological wonder that overlaps real-time 3D delivered computer graphics onto a segment of the real world. AR is different from VR for, in virtual reality the user is immersed in another scenario through devices like headsets and mounted displays, whereas augmented reality projects virtual paintings onto a piece of real world. One isolates, the other transports while being in the same spot.
Through its making, VR requires complex body structure and components, whereas AR applications are simpler to construct.
Example: Whodat
A popular example of augmented reality application is “Whodat,” a company expertised in spatial computing. They deliver the most exceptional and effective AR solutions for each customised marketing challenge. Whodat specialises in creating the perfect immersive retail landscapes for e-commerce platforms. Also, they play a huge role in converting consumer retention rates in the fashion industry through their diverse AR services.
Gamification
Game On: The Rise of Playful Marketing
Like the name suggests, gamification is a process of introducing game elements and mechanics into non-gaming contexts. A way of stimulating the minds of masses through creative storytelling weaved by technical programming.
Gamification has gained significant momentum in the past few years. With games like Pokemon Go, the use of gaming components in virtual and augmented realities has given it more meaning. Brands have leveraged this opportunity to reach a wider demographic and exercise their storytelling in a unique manner.
Example: Gamitronics
Gamitronics, is an Indian company majoring in painting virtual worlds that allow greater customer experiences. The organization believes in gamifying marketing challenges, from retail to entertainment. They are branched into AR/VR solutions and metaverse experiences. They built virtually interactive worlds in a showroom designed by them for an automobile brand. The results outshone the efforts—a whopping 45% gain in the AR-based test-drives was recorded.
The Transcendence of AR/VR in the Indian Marketing Structure
A Shifting Paradigm
India has shown drastic progress when it comes to technology. It is one of the leading economies driving the developmental landscape. With the advent of AR/VR tech, Indian marketing has changed the face of digital footprints. There is seen a positive change in the way marketers present brands and their numbers:
“Of late in India, AR/VR has tickled the fancy of segments beyond gaming, driven by its rising adoption in education, retail and healthcare. Revenue projections for the next five years in India are on an upward trajectory, fueled by growing demand for AR and VR hardware.” — The Secretariat
Market Leaders and Future Outlook
The key players of the Indian Immersive Markets are Meta’s Oculus VR, Microsoft’s HoloLens, Snap Inc., and Nvidia. Their main focus is serving the B2B and B2C service sectors through an efficient and effective marketing strategy.
A glimpse into the future shows that factors like accelerating internet usage, increasing smartphone adaptation, and a growing working population are set to hike the AR/VR applications. It might be just the beginning of the next beacon of change throughout the world.
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